ISLAMABAD: The National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA) has reduced rates at which electricity is sold from solar energy users to the national grid and introduced new net-metering regulations for 2026.
According to a notification issued by NEPRA, existing solar consumers will continue to sell electricity to the national grid at the old rate of Rs 25.32 per unit. However, for new solar users, the buyback rate has been slashed by Rs 17.19 per unit, reducing the new rate to just Rs 8.13 per unit, which is less than one-third of the previous rate.
NEPRA has also introduced a revised net-billing system for both new and existing consumers. Under the new mechanism, electricity units exported to the grid will no longer be adjusted on a one-to-one basis with imported units.
All electricity drawn from the national grid will now be billed according to prevailing government tariffs and slab rates.
Additionally, the license validity period for new net-metering consumers has been reduced from seven years to five years.
According to the Power Planning and Monitoring Company (PPMC), Pakistan currently has net-metering solar systems with a capacity of 7,000 megawatts, while an estimated 13,000 to 14,000 megawatts of solar capacity operates off-grid. Experts believe that the new regulations may encourage a shift toward off-grid solar installations.
The total number of net-metering solar consumers in Pakistan stands at 466,000. PPMC data shows that 82 percent of these consumers are based in major cities, with Lahore accounting for 24 percent, Multan 11 percent, Rawalpindi 9 percent, Karachi 7 percent, and Faisalabad 6 percent.
